Six Divine Swords

"Having just tasted the fruit of wisdom, several red plums fell."

"Suddenly, the golden rope snapped, and the jade lock was pierced through."

"Ah!"

"In the One-Line Gorge, spring tides surge; at sunrise, river flowers blaze brighter than fire!"

You did not see wrong. Daisy had not left the Los Angeles villa all night. The two of them had spent the entire night discussing the unpredictable battle the Avengers would soon wage against Dormammu.

In the end, when Li Congxin saw how anxious Daisy was, he told her several inspirational stories about the characters from Water Margin to boost her morale.

The Liangshan heroes in the stories were:

Lin Chong, Shi Jin, Song Jiang, Ruan Xiao’er, Wu Yong…

As his strength steadily increased, Li Congxin felt that he needed to start considering a successor—someone who could hold up the banner of the Avengers in his absence.

Actually, when it came to leading the Avengers, aside from Li Congxin, the two most qualified candidates were none other than Iron Man and Captain America.

Unfortunately, as time passed, they were destined to be unable to remain at their peak forever. Tony was already nearly fifty!

Although Li Congxin always enjoyed bullying him whenever they interacted, at a time like this, he still needed to consider the matter from Tony’s perspective. What Tony needed now was not the position of Avengers leader. His body had already begun to age, and he needed to rest properly. Helping him settle down and marry Little Pepper and have children was what a friend ought to do.

If he wanted to continue striving for world peace, he could do it like Old Pi, staying behind the scenes to handle logistics and scientific research. As for charging into battle, that should be left to someone else.

With so many top-tier combatants among the Avengers, they were not lacking one mortal body capable of standing shoulder to shoulder with the gods.

As for Captain America, after seventy years of being cryogenically preserved, his body was now at its peak. He was the kind of man who could fight a powerful enemy for an entire day.

However, it had to be admitted that his heart had grown old, and he had long intended to retire.

After considering everything, Daisy was still the most suitable candidate.

Young, energetic, possessing Eternals genes, possessing Sub-Celestial-level combat power, and wielding seismic abilities… Not only was her offense fierce, but her physical body was also exceptionally strong. Tests had already shown that she was comparable to Captain Marvel, and perhaps even superior…

Among the current Avengers, only Daisy and Captain Marvel were Sub-Celestial-level super experts, while Thor was a Celestial-level one.

Because of Captain Marvel’s personality, Li Congxin did not dare hand the Avengers over to her. Who knew whether, once the Avengers fell into her hands, she would drag them all around the universe to maintain peace?

As for Thor, as the saying went, a leopard could not change its spots. He simply was not leadership material. Old Brother Odin had chosen him because Thor was his own biological son. He had no choice.

Li Congxin certainly would not hand the Avengers over to such an unreliable fool. Even if that fool’s strength was powerful enough to defy the heavens, it still would not do!

Over the next few days, the Avengers each grew busy. Led by Tony and the others, the science team devoted themselves to constructing the "Foundation Stones." The others also seized the time to train, preparing for the battles that might occur in the future.

As for Li Congxin, he brought Daisy to Nidavellir. With the Dwarf King’s assistance, he began forging divine artifacts to replace the Infinity Stones. In the evenings, he taught Daisy basic knowledge about the universe, power systems, the complicated relationships between the various factions, the cosmic pantheon, and other related subjects.

Of course, to balance work and rest, he would also tell her some little stories, such as those five Liangshan heroes he had mentioned earlier…

In the blink of an eye, a week had passed. Today was Sunday once again.

During this period, the Avengers had finally completed the construction of the six "Foundation Stones," while Li Congxin had also completed the six divine artifacts meant to replace the Infinity Stones.

During this period, Daisy had gained the most.

Over the course of that week, she had absorbed enough nourishment from Li Congxin. Not only had her repertoire of techniques grown increasingly varied, but her strength had also skyrocketed. In only a month, she had broken through the final shackles of the Sub-Celestial level and become a true Celestial-level powerhouse.

Daisy’s current strength already rivaled Thor, the Thunder God whose ancestors across three generations had all helped him cheat, making her a true pillar of the Avengers!

After organizing their forces and resting for a day, everyone gathered once more at Avengers Tower early the next morning.

Li Congxin directly had Mingyue project a Star Chart of the X-Men Universe. At the same time, he lit up six of the planets and said, "These six planets are where the six Foundation Stones will be placed. I have already entered the specific data into the spacecraft everyone will be riding. When the time comes, split up and find a highland opening on each planet to install the Foundation Stones."

The plan was not complicated, and everyone nodded to show that they understood.

At this moment, Mindy suddenly asked curiously, "Brother Clark, what exactly are the six divine artifacts you forged to replace the Infinity Stones? Could you take them out first and let us broaden our horizons?"

As soon as the little girl’s voice fell, everyone’s gaze landed on Li Congxin.

Clearly, everyone present was very interested in the divine artifacts Li Congxin had painstakingly forged; they had simply been too embarrassed to ask. Now that Mindy had made the request for them, they silently expressed their support for the little girl with their eyes.

Li Congxin smiled faintly at her words. Then, with a casual wave of his hand, six swords brimming with killing intent and so fearsome that they inspired dread appeared hovering above the Avengers’ heads.

"These six treasured swords are the divine artifacts I forged to replace the six Infinity Stones." This time, Li Congxin generously satisfied everyone’s curiosity and began explaining, "They possess the six cosmic laws contained within the Infinity Stones. Their names are Heavenbane, Heavenslaughter, Sky Trap, Heavenrend, Heavensplit, and Heavenbreaker."

Seeing the six murderous swords suspended overhead, all the Avengers felt a chill run down their spines.

However, Shuri, whose eyes were sharp, still noticed the difference between the six swords. She immediately raised her hand and asked, "Brother Clark, why are Heavenrend and Heavenbreaker different from the others? The other four swords are smooth and even, but the spines of the last two have Infinity Stones embedded in them?"

"Because I have not fully comprehended the laws of time and mind contained within the six Infinity Stones, I could only embed the original Infinity Stones into them. That was the only way to maintain balance among the six swords."

After a slight pause, Li Congxin switched to Chinese and continued, "These six swords are based on the power of the Infinity Stones, but they are vicious weapons focused on killing. Any one of them can cut down heaven and slay gods!"

"As the saying goes: Neither copper, nor iron, nor steel, once hidden beneath Mount Sumeru. Without refining by reversing yin and yang, how could water and fire temper their edges? Heavenbane is sharp, Heavenslaughter brings ruin, and Sky Trap raises crimson light in every direction. Heavenrend possesses infinite transformations, while the Living Tribunal’s robes are stained with blood."

Li Congxin’s words immediately left the Avengers impressed, though they had no idea why.

A few of them, however, were exceptions.

Tony stared at the six swords in confusion before asking, "Clark, I studied Chinese too. You clearly have six treasured swords here, so why does your poem mention only four? What about Heavenrend and Heavenbreaker?"

"Er… ha." Li Congxin gave an awkward laugh, then explained solemnly, "I have already explained this. Because I cannot fully master the laws contained within the Time Stone and Mind Stone, those two swords still need the Infinity Stones to unleash their proper power."

As he spoke, he spread his hands. "So I temporarily left those two swords out of the poem. Isn’t that perfectly reasonable?"

Daisy then frowned and asked, "Clark, these six swords were clearly forged by you over the past week. When did you ever hide them beneath Mount Sumeru?"

Shuri immediately nodded in agreement. "That’s exactly what I wanted to ask too."

Li Congxin now felt as if he had two heads and four arms. To conceal his embarrassment, he could only make up an answer on the spot. "The words ‘Mount Sumeru’ do not necessarily refer to one particular mountain. They generally refer to the technique of containing Mount Sumeru within a mustard seed—putting something enormous inside something tiny… Ah, explaining it like this completely ruins the grandeur, but that’s how it is. Therefore, anything I take out of my private space can be said to have ‘once been hidden beneath Mount Sumeru.’ That’s all."

After speaking, Li Congxin swept his gaze across everyone. He noticed Yi Long, always the most honest of them all, trembling at the shoulders as he struggled to hold back his laughter. Unable to help himself, Li Congxin asked, "Could even Big Brother Yi Long see that something was wrong?"

"No!" Yi Long decisively shook his head, but then added in a low voice, "Actually, I have read The Investiture of the Gods."

What the hell…

Li Congxin immediately put away the six treasured swords. Then he waved his hand and issued a direct order. "Chat time is over. Our operation is urgent and our task is heavy. Everyone, pull yourselves together. We are setting out now!"

That attempt at showing off had been an utter failure!

Li Congxin had made his start as the Copycat Writer, but ever since returning from wandering through the universe, he had not copied anyone else’s work in a long time. He had never expected that, on a whim, he would copy something again today and end up being collectively questioned.

Could it be that being a superhero really had better prospects after all?

After the spacecraft left Earth, Li Congxin directly used spatial divine power to send it to Svartalfheim, outside the entrance to the Spatial Vortex.

"This Spatial Vortex is indeed several times larger than before, but it still cannot accommodate a large spacecraft like Congxin One." Li Congxin came to the floor-to-ceiling window of the spacecraft’s control room and looked at the Spatial Vortex before him. "So, in a moment, everyone will need to take small spacecraft into another Parallel Universe. Follow the groups we discussed earlier, with each group responsible for installing a Foundation Stone. Don’t rush. Enter one at a time. I will adjust this Spatial Vortex and send you directly to the star region nearest your target location."

After saying this, Li Congxin took a single step and left Congxin One, arriving before the Spatial Vortex.